Veteran Father Pulls Off Shock Rescue After School Bus Meets Horrific End
Matthew Jenkins from Albuquerque, New Mexico, was on his way to pick up his own kids from school on Wednesday when he came across a terrifying scene.
Jenkins, who according to his Facebook page has spent time in the Army and has received emergency response training, spotted smoke ahead and then realized it was coming from a school bus that had flipped over.
The bus had been carrying 23 students from George I. Sánchez Collaborative Community School when an alleged street racer in a white Mustang ran into the bus’s back tire and flipped the entire bus.
The bus rolled onto its side and the students were tossed around. When Jenkins came upon the scene, he quickly parked and attended to the students and made sure all rescue efforts were being done correctly.
“It was pretty scary, especially … a bus that they’re supposed to be safe in, somebody hits it, and … the bus tumbles over, and they don’t know what to do,” Jenkins told KRQE-TV.
“Everybody was in shock. The kids were coming out of the bus, going different places, they didn’t know what was going on, they were scared, they were calling their parents.”
Several students ended up being taken to the hospital. The driver of the Mustang, later identified as 49-year-old Mario Perez, was also hospitalized.
Thankfully all injured parties are expected to recover. Perez has been charged with two counts of great bodily harm by vehicle, and the growing issue of street racing was addressed by the mayor and police.
“Those children on that bus could’ve died because people were literally just having fun in their sports cars,” Mayor Tim Keller said on the scene, according to the Albuquerque Journal. “That should never be acceptable and people have to understand that their own behavior is dangerous.
“I’m asking Albuquerque to help us hold each other accountable. If you know someone who does this, you’ve got to talk to them; and if you do this, please don’t ever do it again.”
“Sources are telling us there was another vehicle involved and, of course, we are looking — but the vehicle descriptions are broad — so, right now, we are interviewing everybody and getting the accurate information,” Albuquerque police spokesman Daren DeAguero said.
“This is such a traumatic event for the community tonight, being that it could’ve been easily resolved by simply not racing. As soon as we crack down in one area, these individuals are moving to another area … These people are taking it to the street instead of on a track where it belongs.”
Albuquerque Public Schools Spokeswoman Monica Armenta said the parents were notified immediately following the incident, and it was a bit of a miracle that nobody was more seriously injured.
“We don’t see bus crashes like this in Albuquerque,” Armenta said. “It is terrifying and we are very, very, grateful tonight that the situation wasn’t much worse.”
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